Trousers.



A. PAGE.

TROUSERS.

APPLIOATION FILED JAN.6,1912.

1,040,747. Patented Oct. 8, 1912.

ARTHUR PAGE, OF HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND.

TROUSERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 8, 1912.

Application filed January 6, 1912. Serial No. 669,742.

To all whomt't may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR PAGE, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Huddersfield, in the county of York, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trousers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has reference to trousers for mens wear and has for its object the prevention of bagging at the knees which usually develops after the garment has been worn a comparatively short time and, as 1s well known, renders the appearance of the garment unsightly.

Previous attempts to overcome the chihculty, such as providing inextensible bands or tapes extending down the insides of the front folds of the trousers, and attaching pieces of rubber and the like to the insides of the knees of the trousers have proved unsatisfactory either by reason of their poiling the hang of the garment or because of their liability to become detached by the wearer in putting on the trousers.

In carrying out my invention, I provide the front half of each leg portion of the garment with a lining of suitable material extending from the top, or waistband, to a suitable distance below the knee, the said linings being preferably stitched in at the top and at the side seams at the time of making up the garment and thus entailing no extra work in applying them.

Opposite the knee portion of each leg of the garment I form in the lining one or more darts or folds of suitable length and shape that is to say, opposite'thc middle of the knee I fold the fabric, composing the lining, upon itself for a certain distance, and gradually narrow the fold above and below the center or knee line until it dies away at the points marking the top and bottom of the dart. The base of the fold is socured by stitching and if preferred, the edge of the fold may also be held down by stitching. One"dart or fold of suitable dimensions opposite each knee will ordinarily of feet my purpose, though, if preferred two, or. even more darts of comparatively narrow fold may be provided.

In the accompanying drawings :Figure 1 shows a side view of a pair of trousers having the improvements applied; Fig. 2 shows a blank or lining prior to making the dart or darts and inserting in the garment; Fig. 3 shows on an enlarged scale a portion of the lining with the dart made therein, and Fig. 4t shows an edge view of the dart.

Referring to the drawings, the front half of each leg portion of the trouser a has applied thereto, on the inside, a partial lining b of suitable material, stitched in at the waistband and down the side seams, the said lining being of such a length as to extend a short distance below the knee line which is indicated at c on the lining. Each lining b is adapted to have formed therein at the knee line one or more darts (Z which are made by folding the fabric of which the lining is composed upon itself for a suitable distance, the fold being widest at the knee 1111c and gradually becoming narrower above and below the knee line until it dies away at the points marking the top and bottom of the dart. This will be understood by referring to Fig. 2. For the convenience of tailors, the linings would be marked with curved lines o, (2, extending equally on either side of the central line f. In making the dart or fold, the lining would be folded along the central line f and the fold stitched along the line 0, e, causing the width of the lining to be reduced by a certain distance at the knee line, which distance gradually dcoreascs above and below the knee line until the top and bottom of the dart are reached when the lining resumes its normal width. The edge of the folded portion of fabric is then stitched down as at g in Fig. The folding and stitching of the dart may be effected after the trousers have been pressed in the usual way. In Fig. 2 the outer lines 6, 0, represent the stitching lines for a fold or dart of average width, and the inner dotted lines 2', i, the stitching lines for a fold or dart of narrow width. One dart of suitable dimensions opposite each knee will ordinarily effect my purpose, though if preferred two, or even more, darts of comparatively narrow fold may be provided. The effect of the dart or darts (.Z is to narrow or contract the lining opposite the knee portions of the garment in such a manner that when the knees of the wearer are bent the lining is fully stretched and takes the strain without any pressure, or with very little pressure, on the outer [fabric composing the garment, and without any dragging out of shape of the garment.

Instead of forming the darts in partial linings as described they might be formed in short lengths of fabric stitched 011 the insides of the legs of the trousers above the knee and hanging down to a suitable distance below the knee. I do not favor this latter method, there being a great tendency, as in some of the unsuccessful attempts to achieve the object of the invention, for the" pieces of applied fabric to become loosened or detached owing to the stitches securing them in position having to be made only part way through the outer or garment fabric so as not to show on the outside of the garment, while even with the most careful sewing a ridge along the line of stitches shows on the garment. The bottom edges of' the linings or applied pieces of fabric containing the darts are preferably not hemmed but are gimped or scalloped so as not to form ridges to show on the outside of the garment.

I do not limit myself to any particular method of securing the linings or pieces of fabric inside the garment, the essential feature of my invention being the formation opposite the knee portion of each leg of the garment of a dart or darts in a separate inner fabric or lining in the manner and for the purpose specified, and to apply a lining for said purpose in such a manner that liability of the lining being caught by the foot I of the wearer in putting on the trousers is the lining thus cut out being secured to a muslin or other light backing or foundation cut to the shape of the lining shown in full line in Fig. 2.

For very light or thin trousers or military trousers, a similar lining to that above described may be applied in like manner to the rear of the leg portion to resist the pull of the front lining b on the side seams. Strengthening tapes may be applied vertically and. transversely of the lining to counteract any tendency toward stretching thereof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The combination, with a trousers leg, of a strip of textile material secured inside the leg across the knee portion thereof and provided with a longitudinal fold formed by folding the material of the strip upon itself and securing the folded portion to the main portion.

2. The combination, with a trousers leg, of

a strip of textile material secured to the side ARTHUR PAGE.

Witnesses:

THOMAS H. BARRON, ELSIE M. GLEDHILL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G. 

